Transcript EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region Launch Event, Capital XX

EU Strategy for the Baltic
Sea Region
European Commission
DG Regional Policy, Territorial Cooperation
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Agenda
• Two years into implementation phase.
• Short update on how the process looks from our
side, more specifically:
I. Background for the Strategy
II. Outline of the implementation process and the
governance structure
III. Alignment of funding
IV. Reporting issues
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Why an EU Strategy for the Baltic
Sea Region?
• Requested by the European Council, inter alia help to address
the urgent environmental challenges
• A need to speed up implementation of important priorities
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An integrated approach to
identify needs, solutions and
match them to available
resources
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Three objectives:
1.
Save the Sea
2.
Connect the Region
3.
Increase Prosperity
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Added value of an EU Strategy
• It mobilises projects across borders and sectors
• It serves as a catalyst for strengthening
cooperation mechanisms within Member States
and among countries in a Region
• By involving all relevant policy areas and
countries, it promotes balanced regional
development
• It contributes to channel existing funding
instruments so their potential can be fully utilised
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The approach
• An integrated approach:
Environment, Economy, Accessibility, Safety
• A rolling Action Plan:
15 Priority Areas, 90+ Flagship Projects
• Alignment of funding
• Integrated Maritime Policy
• Simple implementation system: better use of
existing institutions, funding, and legislation
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Implementation
• Simple implementation system: making better use of existing
institutions, funding and legislation – no new EU structures, EU
laws, or EU money
• Policy development: European Council and high-level group
• Coordination, monitoring and
follow-up: European Commission
on the basis of a mandate from
the Council in October 2009 and
again in 2012
• Implementation on the ground:
Member State or equivalent
coordinates Priority Area;
Ministry, agency, or other body
leads flagship projects
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Examples of flagship projects
• Remove phosphates in detergents – completed
• Improve waste handling on board and
in ports – completed
• Fund innovation and research
• Promote environmental technologies
• Create marine protected areas
• Connect the Baltic States to the
energy networks
• Improve transport infrastructures
• Establish joint curricula in universities
• Better cooperation in case of marine
pollution
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Alignment of funding
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Structural Funds and other funding sources
Lab Group
Conference in Riga in March 2010
Bilateral meetings in Member States
Issuance of Technical assistance grants courtesy of
European Parliament funding
• Exploring the potential for a seed money facility
Aim: to achieve better coordination and more focus
on the priorities of the Strategy
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Reviews and reporting
• Review of the Action Plan is ongoing, aiming for
completion by end of 2012
• Progress reports now issued bi-annually
• The first review of the Strategy in Council took place
during the PL presidency in 2011
• DK presidency has followed up on PL decisions
• Informal 30 June 2010 report – PAC + OP MA
contributions
• 3rd Annual Forum 2012: 17-19 June in Copenhagen
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Present situation
• Priority Areas are working, some more efficiently than
others.
– Importance of avoiding duplication. In PA11 the new
steering committee has been found to be a better
forum for discussion than existing fora. Back-to-back
meetings, etc.
• Domestic re-organisation
• Results are continuing to show
• Other macro-regions looking to follow…
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Conclusion
• Very demanding process which aims at improving
coherence and coordination between a large
number of:
– policies and priorities at the european, national,
regional levels;
– instruments and programmes;
– Partners, including public, NGO, and private;
– countries and regions - sometimes heterogeneous.
• Macro-regional strategy requires combination of:
– strong political committment,
– preparedness for multilevel governance
– knowledge management experience
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Conclusion
• Importance of intensity and maturity of
cooperation;
• Need for a clear common vision on a limited
number of key issues and of focused
priorities
• The development of new macro-regional
strategies should be considered in the light of the
first results from Baltic and Danube strategies
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Review of the EU Strategy for
the Baltic Sea Region
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The review process
• Annual implementation report, June 2011
• Polish EU Presidency, Council Conclusions,
November 2011
• Commission Communication, March 2012
• Danish EU Presidency, Council Conclusions,
June 2012
• Update of the Action Plan, autumn 2012
=> Strategy 2.0
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Outcomes: An overview
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Clearer objectives, indicators and targets
Clearer roles and responsibilities
Embedding the Strategy in financial instruments
Structured cooperation with neighbours
Better involvement of all stakeholder groups
Better communication
Sustained commitment
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Objectives, indicators, targets
• 3 objectives for the Strategy
– Save the Sea
– Connect the Region
– Increase Prosperity
…made concrete through indicators and targets
For example:
– Objective: Save the Sea
– Indicator: Good environmental status
– Target: by 2021
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Roles and responsibilities
• Guidelines on what is expected from the main
stakeholders are important to make the work
transparent and effective
• Lists setting out these key tasks have been
developed by a task-force
• To be endorsed by the Council and included in
the updated Action Plan
• A handbook will be published with extensive
descriptions, explanations and examples
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The future programming period
• Macro-regional strategies included in the draft regulations,
especially:
– Common provisions, Art. 14(a)v: Partnership Contracts
to take account, where appropriate, of macro-regional
strategies
– Common provisions, Art. 87(c)vi: Relevant Operational
Programmes to set out their planned interventions to
support the Strategy
– ETC regulation, Art. 6(b) allowing transnational
programmes to support implementation (TA)
• Seed money facility to ensure the development of good,
relevant projects
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Involving neighbouring countries
• To build on existing structures, such as the
Northern Dimension, CBSS, NCM and HELCOM
• On-going dialogue with the Russian Federation,
agreement on projects of joint interest – expert
groups to be established
• Regional cooperation with Russian coastal
regions: Turku-process involving St. Petersburg
and Leningrad Oblast; CBSS SEBA involving
Kaliningrad
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Better Communication
• Cooperation with Interact on new website,
newsletter, visual identity.
• Needs analysis in progress
Better involvement of stakeholders
• Through multi-level governance, clearer roles…
Political commitment and policy alignment
• Continuous visibility and relevance to ensure
commitment at all levels
• Strategy included in relevant Council agendas
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Updating the Action Plan
• Merging, adding or cutting Priority Areas? Time
to clean up!
• Making Strategy objectives operational
• Indicators and targets at Priority Area level to
streamline and focus the work
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PAC/HAL/NCP input by May
Annual Forum discussion in June
Draft Action Plan over the summer
Stakeholders consultations in early autumn
Updated Action Plan by the end of 2012
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Thank you for your attention!
EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region: an integrated framework to
address the challenges and opportunities of the Baltic Sea Region
http://www.balticsea-region-strategy.eu/
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